


I'm Always Tired But Never Of You

by justyrae



Series: cat nouis [6]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Animals, Gen, Human!Harry, Human!Liam, M/M, cat!Zayn, cat!louis, cat!niall, human!Nick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-08-14
Packaged: 2019-04-21 18:56:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 8,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14291268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justyrae/pseuds/justyrae
Summary: A collection of ficlets within my silly little cat 'verse.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i thought it might be nice to compile all of the ficlets i've written about cat louis and his furry (and human) friends so it can be a part of the series! also if you don't follow me on tumblr, you might've otherwise missed these!
> 
> links to the original tumblr posts can be found at the end of each chapter, in case you'd like to like/reblog them!
> 
> (and if you'd like to read more, feel free to send me prompts at [my tumblr](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/ask)!)

Louis wakes up from his nap with a bushy tail. He knows the storm is coming before it even starts raining because of it. He hates storms; they’re loud and scary and Harry always comes home wet. Liam does too, but at least he doesn’t try and pick Louis up while he’s still all wet.

The best place to hide out and wait for the storm to pass is the bed, in Louis’ opinion. He doesn’t understand why Harry and Liam leave the bed when it’s storming outside. It’s cozy, it’s warm, and it’s a heck of a lot better than anything else. (The only thing it doesn’t have is food, but Louis can live without food. For a while.)

Louis stretches his paws out in front of him and yawns. The couch was an excellent place for a nap, but he wants to get to the bed before the rain starts. He’ll need some time to paw at the covers until he can burrow underneath them. Liam keeps tucking the blankets under the pillows and making it _difficult_ , but Louis usually manages to pull them loose eventually.

 _Niall?_ Louis meows. Niall’s not on the couch. Niall was definitely on the couch when Louis fell asleep. They were cozied up together and it was nice. _Niall, where are you?_

Niall’s sitting on the windowsill on the other side of the living room, Louis discovers. His tail is bushy as well, twitching back and forth as he stares out the window. His ears are twitching too, and he can’t seem to sit still. Louis has to stand up on his hind paws to bat at Niall’s tail, but he doesn’t bother jumping up to join him on the windowsill. It’s too tall and he’s still kind of sleepy.

_Niall, come down from there._

_What’s going on?_ Niall paws at the window. Raindrops are sliding down the glass and he tries to catch them. _What’s that, Louis?_

 _It’s rain. It’s wet._ Louis bats at Niall’s tail again. _You wouldn’t like it._

_What’s it doing?_

_It’s doing what rain does._ Louis catches Niall’s tail between his paws and presses his nose against it. _Come down here_.

 _Leggo,_ Niall meows. _I’m watching the rain._

 _Niall, come down, you don’t wanna be up there_.

_Yes, I do. I’m watching the rain._

_You’re not gonna like it when—_

A bolt of lightning strikes, flashing brightly and lighting up the dark street outside. Thunder follows quickly afterwards and Niall almost topples off the windowsill backwards.

 _What was that?!_ Niall’s trembling now and his tail is even bushier. Louis’ tail twitches. He wanted to be under the covers by now.

_They come with the rain. Come down, Niall._

Niall’s movements are shaky as he jumps down, taking a bit of a tumble with his front paws. He rubs his nose with his left paw once he’s regained his balance and meows softly.

 _I don’t like them. They’re loud_.

 _I know. C’mon, I have a place to hide from them_.

He leads Niall up the stairs and into the bedroom. They jump onto the bed together and start pawing at the blankets. It works far better with both of them, even if Niall jumps and yowls when the lightning strikes and the thunder rumbles again.

 _See?_ Louis meows once they’re settled under the blankets. _Much better_.

It’s nice and dark under the covers, and the sound of the thunder is muffled. Niall curls up close to Louis, still shaking a little until he manages to calm down.

 _I don’t like the rain._ Niall shivers a little and burrows his head in his paws. _I don’t like the loud._

 _Neither do I_. Louis nuzzles Niall’s ear. _But it can’t get us in here_.

The storm’s long over by the time Liam and Harry come home, but Louis and Niall are still huddled together under the covers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/171705444398/the-first-thunderstorm-after-lirry-adopt-kitten)


	2. Chapter 2

Louis should've known the day was going to be terrible as soon as Harry brought in strange boxes that smelled funny. Although the last time Harry brought home a strange box that smelled funny, he ended up with Niall. That wasn't so bad, in retrospect. Louis likes Niall. He's nice and cuddles well and can get into smaller spaces that Louis can't, which helps a lot when Louis is feeling mischievous.

But these boxes didn't go upstairs into the other room, so Louis doesn't know what they're for. He doesn't really care, until Harry drags both him and Niall from their spots on the couch. Louis doesn't like that. He was napping there. He'd intended to stay there and nap the day away.

 _What's going on?_ Niall meows softly. He wobbles a bit on his feet, still a little drowsy.

_Dunno. See the weird boxes?_

_I'm not going over there. Not after last time._

_I didn't mean for you to get stuck in the box_. Louis nudges his head against Niall's and gently licks his face. _I told you that._

 _I know, but now I don't trust boxes_.

Liam comes into the room and stops. He looks back and forth between the boxes and Louis and Niall a few times before he sighs heavily. Harry looks up at him and Liam pinches the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

"Harry, what're you doing?"

"I told you yesterday, remember?"

"I didn't think you were serious."

_What're they talking about?_

_Dunno. Must be about the weird boxes._

_Can we nap again?_ Niall yawns. _I'm still sleepy._

_Me too. I dunno why Harry pulled us off the couch._

Louis and Niall curl up together while Harry and Liam continue talking. Louis doesn't mean to fall asleep again, but before he knows it, he's being roused yet again. He lets himself be pulled out of his comfortable napping position, thinking maybe Harry will put him back on the couch now.

Instead, something gets placed on his head.

 _What's this?_ Louis tries shaking it off of his head, but Harry just pushes it on further.

"Hold still, Louis."

_Louis, what's going on? What's on my head?_

_I dunno, I've got something on mine too._ Louis tries to swipe at it with his paw. _Harry, what're you doing?_

"Just one second!"

A moment passes and then whatever was on Louis' head is removed and he blinks up at Harry, who's smiling widely.

"See? That wasn't so bad, was it?" He rubs Louis' ears a little and presses a kiss to his head before doing the same to Niall.

Louis turns his head and looks at Niall, whose fur is ruffled and he looks about as disgruntled as Louis feels.

_I don't think I like this._

_Me neither_. Louis' tail twitches. _Harry, what are you doing to us?_

It continues in roughly the same fashion for a while. Niall and Louis have zero idea of what's actually going on, other than Harry just keeps presenting them with weird stuff that they're not really allowed to play with. Any time Louis reaches for something, Harry tells him no. Louis doesn't like hearing the word no.

 _Why are you giving us this stuff if we can't play with it?_ Louis demands, swiping at Harry's hand after it takes away the stuffed chick that used to be on Louis' head. (He really didn't like that. It didn't help that Harry was holding him and Niall under their arms and letting their torsos hang down with no support. It was just insult to injury.)

 _I don't like this_ , Niall meows. _I just wanna nap._

Liam's standing in the doorway still and Louis meows loudly at him. He should be on their side instead of just standing there watching. It's not nice and it's not fair.

_If you get us out of this, I won't bite your toes anymore._

_I'll stop eating your shoelaces!_

_Niall, don't make promises you can't keep._

"They're going to murder you in your sleep," Liam says, crossing his arms.

"No, they're not." Harry frowns. "They love me."

"Louis looks like he's ten seconds away from scratching your arm off."

"He is not, stop that." Harry waves his hand at Liam. "If you're going to be negative, then go be negative somewhere else. I'm trying to keep them happy. I'm almost done."

Liam sighs heavily but does as Harry asks, and leaves. Harry starts pulling out shiny things from the last box, and Louis' ears perk up. He hears things that crinkle, and tiny bells, and he immediately gets curious.

_Oh, this could be good._

It's… a disaster.

Harry does his best to try and set the scene to make it look like Christmas, but both Louis and Niall are far too interested in absolutely everything that Harry takes out. He can't turn his back for even a second without one or both of them trying to tamper with what he's already set up.

The miniature Christmas tree lasts about ten seconds before it's toppled over. The little strap of sleigh bells gets practically torn to bits. The bows that Harry meant to put on Niall and Louis' heads get chewed up within seconds. It's a Christmas massacre.

Louis and Niall have the absolute time of their lives.

"Liam! Liam, I need help!"

But it's too late. By the time Liam comes back in, they've already destroyed everything. Liam sits down next to Harry and dutifully takes the camera out of his hands, pulling Harry into his arms for a much-needed hug.

"You tried," he says, trying to keep the amusement out of his voice as Niall and Louis fight over the same scrap of gift wrap.

"They were doing so well." Harry huffs and leans into Liam's side.

"Don't you remember last Christmas?" Liam chuckles. "We couldn't put any ornaments on the bottom half of the tree because Louis kept pulling them down."

"I… didn't remember that until now." Harry tilts his face and hides it against Liam's neck. "They're both menaces, aren't they?"

"Little bit."

They sit and watch Louis and Niall until they tire themselves out. Niall goes down first, splayed on his front amongst the shredded remains of ribbons and gift wrap. Louis takes a little longer, but eventually he curls up next to Niall with a bow caught between his paws.

 _That was fun_.

 _Yeah, it was._ Louis opens one eye to see Harry and Liam smiling down at them. Louis closes it again and settles in. He hears the click of the camera but doesn't mind one bit.

Harry ends up taking so many photos of the two of them sleeping amongst the rubbish that when it comes time to make a calendar, every month looks like Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/171839935813/all-right-so-that-one-pic-right-catlouis-and)


	3. Chapter 3

Liam’s out of town for a few days for a work thing when Harry gets the idea. He counts it as lucky that Liam’s gone because he probably would’ve told Harry he’s being ridiculous and it’ll never work and remember last time??

(Harry does remember last time. But he’s got faith in his kitties, you see.)

So he invites his good-friend-and-conveniently-also-professional-photographer Nick over with promises of cooking him dinner complete with a tasty baked good for dessert, in exchange for a little photo session. He doesn’t mention it’s for his cats until Nick’s already there, because Harry’s pretty sure Nick would’ve said fuck off otherwise.

Predictably, Nick does tell Harry to fuck off. But there’s already a roast in the oven and fresh biscuits cooling on the countertop in the kitchen, so Nick stays anyway.

After thirty minutes of Harry pouting and Louis biting at his shoes, Nick gives in.

It’s a warm summer afternoon and Liam finally repaired the hole in the fence in their tiny backyard (which they only discovered after the last (and only) time they let the cats explore the backyard and Niall slipped through. It’s a good thing he came right back, otherwise Harry would’ve had another heart attack.) so Harry lets Niall, Louis, and Zayn out while Nick sits down on the patchy grass and sets up his camera.

Louis and Zayn become preoccupied with pouncing on each other in the patch of tall grass near the tree, the one spot that Liam can’t seem to tame with the push mower. Harry smiles as he watches them, taking his own phone out to film a bit of it and pretending that they’re playing like they’re big cats on the savannah, or something.

His cats are so smart.

Harry glances around for Niall, wondering why he isn’t with Louis and Zayn, and his heart swells when he finds him.

Niall’s taken a liking to Nick. He’s gone right over and climbed up Nick’s leg, curling up on his thigh and settling in. Harry snaps a few photos of his own before he sits down and watches Nick do his professional thing, concentrating mostly on Louis and Zayn.

But Niall doesn’t stay put for long. He gets bored of just sitting on Nick’s thigh while Nick isn’t paying attention to him, so he makes a game out of it. Within a few minutes, he’s up on Nick’s shoulder and meowing in Nick’s ear.

Harry can see Nick rolling his eyes but he doesn’t try and push Niall away. There’s the hint of a smile creeping at the corner of Nick’s mouth, and Harry _knows_ it’s a matter of time before Nick caves.

He takes his phone out again and starts filming so he has video proof for later when Nick’s denying the whole thing.

And then Niall decides to climb on top of Nick’s head and Harry has to cover his mouth to stop from giggling, but he catches Nick’s attention anyway.

Nick glares at him when their eyes meet. Niall stays perched on top of Nick’s head for the rest of the afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/172352081603/another-cat-nouis-ficlet)


	4. Chapter 4

“You can come to mine,” Harry says into his phone as he absentmindedly continues petting Louis. “We can watch a movie or something.”

 _You’re doing it wrong._ Louis tries to catch Harry’s hand in his paws to get his attention back where it should be. _No, Harry, like this!_

“It’ll just be you and me,” Harry says, his voice going a bit softer. “Like a proper sort of date.”

Louis’ ears go flat against his head. Harry’s stopped petting him entirely now. Louis doesn’t know who Harry’s talking to but he doesn’t like being ignored.

“I’m looking forward to it too. See you soon, Liam.”

Louis nips at Harry’s fingers, catching the tip with one of his teeth. Harry hisses as he finally puts down his phone and he turns to Louis.

“Am I not paying you enough attention?” he says as he starts scritching Louis with both hands, playfully digging his fingers into Louis’ tummy and mussing up his fur.

_No, you were on that stupid phone. I’m much better than some stupid phone._

“My little Lou, so needy.” Harry bends down and nuzzles his face against the top of Louis’ head. Louis starts purring and forgets all about the stupid phone.

Louis is in the middle of a nap when the doorbell rings. Harry springs up off the couch, jostling him even more than the shrill sound of the doorbell had a moment ago. Louis yawns and stretches, thinking maybe it’s the nice lady who gives them pizza sometimes. He likes when she brings pizza because Harry lets him have some of the pizza. He’s very excited about the thought that tonight could be a pizza night, up until he reaches the hallway and he sees that it’s not the pizza lady at all. It’s some weird human he’s never seen before.

 _Who are you?_ Louis rubs up against Harry’s legs. _Harry, who’s this? Why is he here?_

“Oh, you’ve got a cat!” The human bends down to Louis’ level and Louis shrinks back between Harry’s legs.

“This is Louis,” Harry says proudly as he manages to scoop Louis into his arms and the other human stands back up again. “You’re not allergic, are you? I didn’t even think--”

“Nah, I’m not. Don’t worry.” The human smiles at Louis and offers his hand. “Hi there, Louis. I’m Liam.”

Louis lets out a soft growl as he stares at Liam. Harry jostles him a bit.

“Be nice, Lou. He’s very loving once you get to know him. He’s probably just a bit scared, you know. New person, and all that.”

“I’ll have to come by more often,” Liam replies, smiling at Harry. “Have him get used to me.”

“I’m sure he’d like that.”

_I’m sure I would not._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/172528778808/please-tell-me-how-cat-louis-reacted-when-harry)


	5. Chapter 5

Harry's moving out. It's fine, it's time, and he's excited about this. He's got a brand new job and he's found a nice place to live and it's all going to be great. But… he is going to miss his mum. A lot. It's probably embarrassing, really.

Gemma likes to tell him it's embarrassing, but even _she_ cried a bit when she moved out, so Harry just tells her to stuff it.

Both his mum and Robin drive him to his new place, but Robin mysteriously disappears after the car's been emptied of Harry's boxes. He shows back up half an hour later with a box in his hands, giving some ridiculous excuse about not being able to find parking.

"There was a spot right in front, what are you--" Harry trails off as Robin hands the box over to his mum and she turns to Harry with a big smile.

"This is for you," she says.

"What is it?" Harry asks as he takes it, and he's about to give it a little shake when he hears the tiniest meow coming from inside the box. He drops down to the floor as carefully as he can and opens up the box to reveal a tiny white kitten with big blue eyes.

"I know you're worried about being lonely," his mum says as she kneels down on the floor next to him. "So I thought you might like to have a little furry friend to keep you company."

Harry carefully reaches into the box to scoop the kitten into his hands, marveling at how tiny it is and how well it fits in the palm of his hand. The kitten meows again and headbutts Harry's thumb.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Harry asks, glancing quickly at his mum for a second before he turns his attention back to the tiny kitten.

"A boy. Born not too long ago, and he doesn't have a name." His mum smiles and runs her fingers through Harry's hair. "Thought you might like to give him one yourself."

Harry lifts the kitten up in his hands, bringing him closer to his face so he can get a good look at him. The kitten meows as he reaches his paw out and touches Harry's nose, and then headbutts him right on the mouth.

"I think I'll name him… Louis."

*

Louis likes his new home. He even likes his new name. He didn't know he needed a name, but now he has one, and he likes it a lot. He likes the nice human who takes care of him, too. Harry's a bit odd and a bit clumsy, but Louis doesn't mind.

He's a bit clumsy too, actually. His paws don't seem to want to do all the same things that Louis wants them to do. He hopes that someday they will.

What he really wants to do is to learn how to go up the stairs on his own. It's really hard, they're really big compared to his size, but Harry's not always around to carry him up.

Like right now, Louis can hear Harry upstairs but he can't get to him. He's making the same weird sniffly noise that he was making yesterday. Louis doesn't like that noise.

_Harry, help me. I can't get to you._

Louis sits at the bottom of the stairs, meowing as loud as he can. It's not very loud, really. Harry probably can't hear him.

_The stairs are too big, Harry. I can't do this on my own._

But Harry still doesn't come. Louis meows once more, but nothing.

_I can do this. I need to get to Harry._

Louis stands up on his hind legs and reaches as far forward as he can with his front paws, latching his claws into the carpet on the stairs so he can pull himself up. It's tiring work, and sometimes his claws get stuck or he accidentally bumps his head into the next step up.

He almost slips and tumbles down when he's about halfway up, but he manages to dig his claws into the stair tight enough that he doesn't.

 _Harry?_ Louis meows shakily. _Harry, I'm coming. I can do this._

It seems like forever between the time he started climbing the stairs and when he reaches the top, but when Louis finally makes it he pauses at the very top and meows triumphantly.

_I did it!! Harry, I did it!!_

But Harry's still sniffling. Louis runs to where the sniffling sound is coming from and finds Harry sitting on the bed all by himself. Louis meows as he circles around the bed, trying to find a way up. The bed is much, much taller than one stair. He can't jump onto the bed.

_Harry, I'm here, can you see me??_

"Lou?" Harry leans over the edge of the bed and rubs his eyes. "Did you climb the stairs all by yourself?"

_You bet I did!!_

Harry reaches down and picks Louis up in one hand, bringing him up onto the bed and setting him down gently. Harry reclines onto his back and Louis clambers up onto his chest, stumbling a little as he walks right up to Harry's face.

"Hi, Lou."

 _Hi, Harry_. Louis puts his paw on Harry's nose. _You're sad._

"I'm okay. Just a little homesick."

_Don't be sad. I'm here. We're home._

Louis nuzzles against Harry's chin, giving him a few licks to comfort him until Louis is satisfied that Harry's no longer sad. He curls up under Harry's chin and starts purring, feeling Harry's laugh as much as he hears it.

"Good thing I've got you around, hmm?"

_Yes._

"Can't be sad when there's an adorable little kitten to take care of."

_Exactly._

"Love you, Lou." Harry gently pets Louis' back, and then rubs his ears. "I'm glad I have you."

_Me too, Harry._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/172632202838/obviously-there-is-not-rush-and-im-clearly)


	6. Chapter 6

Louis is a cat, so naturally, Louis is curious. He wants to know where Harry goes when he leaves the house! He’s gone all day, so it must be somewhere fun. Why can’t Louis come along?

Harry won’t let him go outside, though. He blocks the door when he leaves, and even though Louis is still quite small, he still hasn’t been able to make it through. It doesn’t stop him from trying most every day, though.

His big break comes one spring day when Harry opens one of the windows in the kitchen to let the fresh air in. He doesn’t expect Louis to be able to reach it, seeing as how it’s over the sink and Louis isn’t big enough to jump onto the counter.

But Louis is curious. And Harry should not have underestimated Louis’ curiosity.

He waits until Harry leaves the kitchen and is preoccupied with something else to make his move. It takes him a little longer than he would’ve liked (and far longer than he’d admit) to figure out his plan and execute it.

Of course, Harry’s smart enough not to leave any chairs close to the counter, and the table is far enough away that Louis can’t jump from it onto the counter. But he figures out if he can open up one of the lower cabinet doors and use it as a launching point, he can definitely make it up onto the counter.

It’s just... jumping onto the top of the door without having it swing shut is a bit more difficult than Louis thought it would be. (Opening the cabinet turned out to be _way_ easier than he thought it would be, even if he did sort of squish his face against it and that didn’t feel very good.)

It takes four tries for Louis to manage to scramble up onto the counter, and what he hadn’t expected was the cabinet door to slam closed after he jumped. It makes a noise loud enough to catch Harry’s attention, which makes Louis’ hair stand on end.

“Louis?” Harry calls. “Louis, what’re you doing?”

Louis can’t get caught! He’s so close!

He trots across the countertop to the sink and climbs up onto the windowsill, and immediately his tiny kitten nose is awash with all the smells of the outside world. He closes his eyes and breathes in deep, already so excited about everything he’s going to explore!!!

But then... it goes wrong.

Louis accidentally goes one step too far and tumbles out through the window.

“Louis!!” Harry shouts, having come into the kitchen just in time to see Louis go out the window.

 _Harry!_ Louis meows in terror. _Harry, I’m stuck!_

Louis didn’t know there was a bush underneath the window. He doesn’t even really know what a bush is, but he knows he’s stuck in something with lots of green things sticking out and brown pointy bits that hurt his poor little kitten body. He doesn’t like this bush thing. Not at all.

 _Harry,_ he meows sadly as he tries to pull himself free. _Harry, help me!_

“Louis!”

The door slams against the house as Harry comes tearing out to rescue Louis, finding him caught between the branches of the bush. Louis is meowing up a storm and trying to climb out by himself, but every time he moves he sinks a little further into the bush.

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” Harry says calmly as he carefully reaches into the bush and pulls back the branches surrounding Louis. “I’ve got you, it’s okay.”

 _Harry_ , Louis whines. _I just wanted to go outside_.

“It’s okay, Lou.” Harry cradles Louis against his chest and gently pets his head as he carries him back inside. He carefully picks out any remaining bits of bush out of Louis’ fur before he sets Louis back down on the floor.

The first thing Harry does is close the window. He’s not letting Louis get out again.

“Oh, Lou,” Harry sighs as he gets Louis’ treats out of another cabinet and sits down on the floor with him. “Poor little curious kitten.”

 _Never again_ , Louis meows as he climbs onto Harry’s lap. _Outside is bad._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/172844539028/guess-whose-back-back-again-has-cat-louis-ever)


	7. Chapter 7

_What are you doing?_

Zayn doesn’t move. Louis reaches out with his paw and prods Zayn’s head.

_Zayn. Wake up_.

Niall comes bounding over to investigate, even though Zayn still hasn’t moved a muscle. There’s a good chance that he’s sound asleep, but Louis doesn’t care.

_What’s going on?_

_I want to ask Zayn a question._ Louis prods him again. _Wake up_.

Zayn stirs a little, stretching out his paws before he turns his head around to look at Louis and blink.

_What?_

_What are you doing?_

Zayn blinks again. _I was sleeping._

_But why are you sleeping here?_

_Because I wanted to sleep here._

Louis huffs. _You’re not supposed to sleep here._

_Why not?_

_Because that’s the rule. We don’t sleep on that thing._

Niall tilts his head. _Why not?_

_Because that’s the rule._ Louis glares at Niall. _Don’t question the rule._

_It’s a stupid rule._ Zayn turns his head, closing his eyes and trying to go back to sleep.

_It looks cozy._ Niall touches the cat bed with his paw. _It’s fuzzy. How come we haven’t slept on this before?_

_Because that’s the rule!_ Louis hisses. _We sleep everywhere_ except _there._

_But why?_ Niall asks as he puts both his front paws on the cat bed. _It’s so fuzzy._

_Plenty of room._ Zayn shifts around so he’s only taking up half the space on the cat bed, letting Niall curl up beside him.

_Traitor!_

_It’s so cozy._ Niall blinks a few times before his eyes slip closed and he starts purring. Zayn is definitely already asleep, and Louis is furious.

Two traitors in his house. What did he do to deserve this??

Louis goes back to his favorite spot on the couch and curls up all by himself. He doesn’t need them to have a good nap.

He lasts twenty minutes.

_Hey._ _Wake up_.

Zayn blinks and huffs loudly. _What now?_

Louis gently prods the cat bed.

_Room for one more?_

*

When Harry and Liam get home from work, they can’t find any of the cats. Harry runs around the house panicking for approximately five minutes until Liam finds them in the corner of the spare room, all piled on top of one cat bed.

“Do you think we should get them another bed?” Liam asks.

“But then it wouldn’t be as cute,” Harry replies as he takes approximately a thousand pictures.

Louis’ ear twitches and for a moment he thinks about bolting and ruining at least half of Harry’s pictures. But he’s sandwiched between Zayn and Niall, with Zayn’s paw around his neck and Niall curled up against his tummy, and he doesn’t want to disturb either of them.

Maybe the cat bed isn’t so bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/173052121163/cat-beds-does-harry-buy-like-50-and-they-use)


	8. Chapter 8

None of the cats see it coming. To their credit, none of them overhear Harry on the phone with Nick because it's early afternoon and that means the sun is peeking in through the upstairs window onto the bed, giving them the best nap spot in the whole house. All three of them are curled up together soaking up the rays, snoozing nicely in the warmth.

But their nap is rudely interrupted when the front door closes and they hear excited barking followed by scurried footsteps downstairs.

_What is it?_ Niall cuddles closer to Louis and Zayn.

_Louis?_ Zayn gently headbutts Louis, whose fur has gone all prickly and his tail has started to twitch back and forth.

_She's back_.

_Who's back?_ Zayn yawns as he stretches his paws. He could very well go back to sleep right this moment, but the cozy little spot on Louis' side he'd been using for a pillow has moved.

_Pig._

_What's a Pig?_ Niall stands up and goes to sit by Louis on the edge of the bed, peering out of the bedroom door as the barking continues downstairs.

_Pig's a dog._ Louis whines softly. _A big dog with a rough tongue that drools too much and she trods on my tail all the time._

_I don't like dogs_ , Zayn hisses. _Dogs aren't nice._

_I've never seen a dog._ Niall cocks his head to the side. _Have I?_

_Nick is Pig's human. You've met Nick._ Louis turns his head and nuzzles against Niall. _But he hasn't brought Pig 'round in a while._

_I want to see the dog. Can we go see it?_

_I don't think--_

Niall's already jumped down off the bed. Louis glances back at Zayn for a second before he jumps down to follow, Zayn taking another few seconds to do the same. Niall leads the way down the stairs, pausing about two-thirds of the way down when he catches a glimpse of Pig in the living room.

Louis' tail goes all bushy when he sees that Pig's not the only dog in the house.

_There's another one??_

He's angry now. The sheer audacity of Harry letting not just one but _two_ dogs in the house? He's got half a mind to go right back upstairs and hide under the bed until Nick takes his stupid dogs home. And then maybe a bit longer, just to make Harry sweat a little.

_That one's not as big, though_. Zayn joins Louis on the same stair and leans against him. _We could take it on, the two of us._

_What about me?_ Niall meows. _I wanna help._

_D'you think if we take the little one down, Pig will get scared too?_ Louis' tail twitches and rubs up against Zayn's.

_Can't hurt to try._

They wait until the little black dog comes closer to the stairs, and then it's an all out war. They descend onto it all at once, but even taken by surprise the dog still has enough wits to take off running.

Louis takes up the chase, Zayn and Niall right behind him, and the four animals go racing through the living room and into the kitchen and back again. Pig starts barking at all of them, joining in when they come back through the living room.

"Pig, no! Leave the cats alone!" Nick calls. "Stinky, come here!"

Harry snatches Louis right up off the floor on his next lap, leaving Zayn and Niall to continue chasing Stinky around the downstairs.

"What are you doing?" Harry asks as he cradles Louis close to his chest despite Louis wiggling madly to try and get loose. "Naughty cat, Lou."

_You don't understand._

Pig gives up the chase in favor of coming over and sniffing at Louis, seemingly remembering that she knows this cat in particular. Louis' tail is still free, and Louis tries his very best to thwack Pig in the eye. He manages to get her snout, which he still counts as a win.

"C'mere Pig dog," Nick says as he tugs on Pig's collar. "Leave Louis alone, you silly mutt."

When Stinky comes running back in, only Niall is chasing him. Zayn slinks in after they've already made a loop around the living room. He jumps up onto the armrest of the couch on Harry's side and jumps onto the back, making himself comfortable on the cushion behind Harry's head.

_I think Niall likes the little dog_.

Louis growls grumpily from where he's still pinned by Harry's arms. _Harry cheated. I would've gotten him by now._

_Let Niall have his fun. Maybe he'll tire the thing out and we can get him then._

Of course, Zayn falls asleep shortly after and is of no more use to Louis. Harry keeps a relatively tight grip on Louis to prevent him from going after Stinky again, whereas Niall is free to keep chasing him around. Pig, on the other hand, is held in place by Nick hanging onto her collar so she doesn't go running off after Niall.

She sits by Nick's feet and stares at Louis with her mouth hanging open and a playful look in her eyes.

Louis just glares back at her, remembering their last meeting all too well to trust that Pig won't try and eat his head again.

(Pig didn't really try to eat his head, she just got a little overzealous with her tongue is all.)

Niall eventually tires himself out, as does Stinky, and the two of them end up back in the living room with the rest of them. Stinky splays out on his stomach near Nick's feet, panting heavily as Niall curls up into a ball across the room.

Pig struggles to get free of Nick so she can curl up next to Stinky, nosing at his head until they're cuddled up together on the floor. Louis watches it carefully. He then looks over at Niall, who's fallen asleep almost immediately after all the running around, and something warm blooms in Louis' tummy.

He doesn't want to admit it, but he and Pig are a lot alike. He can't help but see himself and Niall in the two of them. (With a lot less slobber, of course.) Maybe, just maybe, dogs aren't so bad after all.

Louis still won't let Pig near his head, though. Some things he just won't forgive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/173658541903/cats-interacting-with-dogs-could-be-stinky-and)


	9. Chapter 9

Louis doesn't like change. Niall and Zayn don't particularly like change either, but Louis _hates_ it. He likes things to be a certain way because that's the way they've always been. He likes his routine, and he thought Harry and Liam knew that.

He doesn't understand why Harry and Liam decided to leave their house behind for another house. A dumber house. A house without the fuzzy carpet that Louis could tear up with his claws. A house with heavy kitchen cabinet doors, making it impossible for Louis to inspect what's inside.

A house that doesn't smell like Harry and Liam at all.

Bottom line, Louis hates the new house.

And it's been less than a day since they all moved in.

Boxes are stacked everywhere, making it hard for Harry and Liam to move around. Zayn went into hiding the moment his carrier was unzipped; not even Louis knows where he is. Niall's been following Louis' every move since they got out of their carriers and Louis can't blame him. He doesn't wanna get lost in the new house either.

_Why are we here?_ Niall meows sadly. _I don't like this place._

_I don't know._ Louis brushes against Niall and tries not to let on how upset he is. _I don't like it either._

_It smells funny. Do we have to stay here?_

_I think so. I don't know._

_But why?_ Niall starts trembling. _I don't wanna stay here, I wanna go home._

_I know you do._

_Maybe if we go back to our carriers, they'll take us home._

Louis doesn't think that's how it works, but he's willing to try it. He leads Niall back through the maze of boxes towards where their carriers are, or at least to where he thought they were. When they get there, the carriers are missing.

Niall starts howling and cowers under Louis' belly. Liam pops up from behind one of the stacks of boxes and clicks his tongue a few times.

"It's okay, Niall. You're home!"

_This isn't home,_ Louis hisses. _You took us from our home and brought us here._

"Your beds are around here somewhere, I know they are," Liam mumbles as he checks the sides of the boxes for the labels. "Harry!"

"What?" Harry calls back, his voice sounding too far for Louis' liking.

"Where's the box with all the cat stuff?"

Louis and Niall don't wait for the answer. Louis starts slinking around the boxes, Niall hot on his tail, and eventually they make it to Liam and Harry's bedroom.

The bed is the only thing that's put together in the whole of the room, complete with sheets, pillows, and a duvet.

And under the duvet is a familiar lump.

Louis noses under the duvet at one corner of the mattress, letting Niall climb up to burrow in before following suit. Together they find Zayn in the center of the duvet, curled up in a ball and radiating tension.

_Been wondering where you were_. Louis noses at the side of Zayn's head as Niall curls himself into a ball right next to both of them.

_Been here the whole time_ , Zayn huffs softly as he licks the top of Louis' head.

_Smells like home in here_ , Niall purrs.

_The only place that does in this stupid house._ Zayn stretches out and then snuggles closer to Louis and Niall. _Why'd they have to go and move us here?_

_Dunno_. Louis huffs. _Don't like it._

_Let's stay here_ , Niall meows. _Forever._

_Fine with me._ Zayn puts his head down on his paws.

_Me too._ Louis closes his eyes and sighs. Their world may be turned upside down, but at least they have each other.

(Harry and Liam nearly lose their minds looking for the cats later on that afternoon. But when they finally look under the duvet on the bed and find all three sleeping peacefully, they decide to crawl under the duvet and take a nap along with them. The move's been stressful on all five of them, and a nap's always in order.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/174157312963/i-feel-like-i-havent-given-a-prompt-for-awhile-so)
> 
> i've made a separate tumblr for cat nouis headcanons! you can find it [here](https://threecatsandaharry.tumblr.com/), if you're interested!


	10. Chapter 10

Harry doesn't like leaving Louis alone overnight. Ever since that one night where he accidentally spent the night at Liam's and left Louis without food, he's been a bit paranoid about it. Any time he _has_ to go away he makes sure to get someone to stay with Louis, even if it's just for one night.

Normally it's Gemma or his mum, because both of them adore Louis just as much as Harry does. Although any time either of them stay over Louis is just a tiny bit rounder than he was when Harry left him, leading him to believe that they're even bigger pushovers than he is.

Louis likes his treats a very much lot, okay?

But he has a conference to attend in Wales and he'll be gone for three whole days - and neither his mum nor Gemma are available to catsit - so Harry's panicking a little.

"I'll watch him," Liam says, totally out of the blue.

"You… what?"

"I'll watch him," Liam repeats with a smile. "I don't mind."

"But… are you sure?" Harry asks. As much as he wants Louis and Liam to get on, he knows damn well that his cat is rather… particular. He tends to like Liam's shoes a lot more than he actually likes Liam.

"It's only three days, Haz. I'm sure I can handle feeding him."

"Will you stay over, though?" Harry asks, getting a little anxious already. "He doesn't like to be left alone overnight, he gets--"

"Yes, I'll stay over," Liam says, scooting closer to Harry on the couch and putting his arm around him. "Don't worry about a thing," he says as he kisses Harry on the cheek. "It'll be just fine."

"If you're sure."

"I'm sure."

*

Louis is not amused.

There's a suitcase on the floor. The suitcase doesn't come out unless Harry's leaving, and Louis hates it when Harry leaves. He tries sitting in the suitcase, but Harry keeps taking him out of it so that's not going to work.

Louis is very, very annoyed.

_You're leaving me_.

"Louis, come on now, don't do that."

_How could you leave me?_ Louis trots across Harry's carefully folded clothes, picking a nice jacket to sit directly on top of. _You know I don't like it when you leave me._

"Liam's going to stay with you, it's going to be okay, I promise."

Louis' tail twitches. _I don't want him to stay with me, I want you to stay._

But Harry doesn't stay. He leaves with his suitcase and Liam stays with Louis.

"This'll be alright, yeah?" Liam says as he looks down at Louis after Harry's gone. "The next couple days will fly by and Harry will be back home."

Louis stares up at Liam for a moment, his tail twitching behind him, and then darts upstairs and hides under the bed.

He refuses to come out, even when Liam tries to offer him food and treats. Liam even gets down and lies on his stomach to peer under the bed in the hopes that it'll coax Louis out of hiding, but it doesn't.

"Okay, I'll just leave these here for you, in case you get hungry," Liam says as he lifts himself off the floor, having been down there for a good half an hour already.

_Bring Harry back, then I'll come out._

Louis stays under the bed all night and into the next day. Liam refills the little dish of food and water before he leaves for work, trying again to coax Louis out from under the bed. It doesn't work.

Only when he hears the front door open and shut does Louis crawl out, and then he jumps up onto the bed and curls up on Harry's pillow. It smells very much of Harry, but slightly of Liam too. Louis doesn't like it.

_Harry, come home_ , he cries.

*

This goes on for another day and a half. Liam comes home, Louis runs right back under the bed. He refuses to come out, no matter how many treats Liam tries to bribe him with. It just doesn't work.

Louis doesn't see the harm in staying under the bed. It's quiet, it's cozy, and it's an excellent place to hide out until Harry comes home. He doesn't understand why Liam wants him to come out so badly. As far as Louis is concerned, Liam doesn't even like him.

"C'mon Lou, please?" Liam begs, stretching his hand out towards Louis.

_No. Go away._

Liam sighs heavily and pulls his arm back. "I miss him too, y'know."

Louis' ear twitches.

"I don't like that he's gone away any more than you do."

_He's my human, not yours_.

"I thought maybe you and I would bond, though. Give Harry a nice little gift when he gets back."

Louis blinks. _What._

"I thought if we spent a little time together you might warm up to me." Liam sighs again. "And maybe you'd stop eating my shoes."

_Your shoes deserve it. They look funny._

"But… if you wanna just stay down there until Harry gets home, I'll let you." Liam sniffles a little. "I get it."

Louis watches as Liam disappears from his view. He hears the squeak of the mattress indicating that Liam's climbed on top of the bed. But what Louis didn't expect to hear was more sniffling.

He remembers that sound. Harry's made it before, and Louis hates it. That sound means Harry's sad. If Liam's making it, does that mean Liam's sad?

Curiosity gets the better of him. Louis crawls out and the sniffling sound gets louder. He stands up on his hind legs to get a peek over the top of the bed and he sees Liam's back. He's shaking a little.

Louis sits down on his hind legs and meows softly. _This won't do. Harry won't like it if he comes back and Liam's sad._

He jumps up onto the bed and trots over towards Liam's head, catching his attention before he even reaches his destination.

Liam doesn't say anything, he just watches as Louis comes closer and closer, until he can feel Louis' whiskers against the skin on his cheek. And then, without warning, Louis headbutts him.

_Don't be sad_.

Liam laughs as Louis headbutts him again.

"Hi, Lou." Liam gives him a good scratching between his ears and Louis starts purring (completely involuntarily, of course). "I'm glad you came out to see me."

_Yeah well_. Louis nudges his nose against Liam's cheek. _You were sad. I don't like sad._

"Stay still, just a minute."

Liam fidgets around, taking his hand away from Louis' head just long enough to get his phone out of his pocket. He's back to scratching Louis' ears before he can really start to complain about it.

"How about we send Harry a photo, hmm?" Liam says softly as he opens up his camera and flips it around to face the both of them. Louis immediately presses his face over Liam's, taking up most of the photo when it gets taken.

_Gimme. I want it._

"Harry will love that one," Liam says with a laugh, spitting out a few bits of cat hair a moment later.

Louis ends up curling up on Liam's chest, purring contentedly as Liam strokes his back.

He's still going to eat Liam's shoes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/174830181118/im-feeling-sad-and-small-so-of-course-im)


	11. Chapter 11

Liam smells funny. It's the same sort of funny smell that Louis remembers from when Niall first appeared, and Zayn too. It's an Outside smell and he doesn't like it. Liam didn't used to smell like this when he'd come home. He just smelled like Liam before.

Niall and Zayn notice it too. Neither of them like it either, but none of them can figure out why Liam's started smelling like this all the time now.

He's started bringing home a weird box thing too. It sort of reminds Louis of the box thing that Harry pulls out whenever he goes away, except it's smaller. Also Liam uses it every day, so after a few days Louis doesn't think Liam's leaving anymore. (It's weird for him to admit that he's a bit relieved about it.)

One night the cats manage to get into it and spill the contents out onto the floor while Harry and Liam are asleep upstairs. There's lots of papers and small pointy things, and everything is _covered_ in that weird Outside smell.

 _What is that?_ Niall pokes at one of the bigger papers with his paw.

_I dunno._

_I know what it is._ Zayn's tail twitches. _It's other cats._

 _Other cats?!_ Louis hisses. _Why is Liam hanging around other cats??_

 _Dunno_. Zayn flicks his tail against the box. _Think Harry knows?_

 _About the other cats?_ Louis growls softly. _He better not. We don't need any more cats here._

 _Is another cat coming?_ Niall meows pitifully. _Will one of us have to go?_

 _No_. Louis rubs up against Niall and licks the top of his head. _Nobody's going anywhere._

It's hard for all three of them not to continue to worry about more cats being introduced into the household, but ages go by without anyone new coming home with either Liam or Harry. Liam continues to smell weird, but when Zayn accidentally gets his tail stuck in one of the doors upstairs, Liam's able to make it feel better. And when Niall eats too many fuzzy things he found under the table, Liam knows what to give him to get the nasty fuzzy things out.

Louis might not like it when Liam comes home smelling weird, but he supposes he'd rather have Liam around and smelling weird than not around at all. (But he'll never let Liam know that, of course. Toes have to be eaten, shoes have to be clawed, that sort of thing.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [original tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/177007885743/i-was-just-watching-baseball-and-my-mind-went-to)


End file.
